How should an employer handle a situation in which a check has been sent to a former employee but has not been cashed or returned in the mail?

An employer can and should do its due diligence as soon as possible to find or confirm the addresses of former employees. If there is any question about whether an uncashed check reached its intended recipient, the employer may wish to cancel that check and reissue another one if the employer believes that it now has a better address.

It probably is also worth the expense to send these checks (and accompanying statements) by certified mail, return receipt requested, so that the employer will have a record that it was delivered to the intended recipient. If the employer has made a diligent effort to track down a good address, but the check still couldn’t be delivered, then that employee’s payment can be redirected to the Unpaid Wage Fund.

On the other hand, if there is no real doubt about the payment (and statement) having actually been delivered to the employee entitled to receive them, and then the employer has done its part, even if the check is not cashed right away.

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